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Causes And Effects Of The Dark Ages

Decent Essays

The Dark Ages

The Dark Ages, described as a period in which many tragedies occurred in Europe, was not so “dark” as it sounds; it was rather a time of important change across the continent. With the collapse of the Roman Empire, which had controlled a majority of Europe for centuries, local governments arose and dominated the region. The Catholic church also survived the collapse, and its monasteries served as hospitals, inns, and schools. New discoveries in technology, advances in farming, and resettling increased Europe’s population and made its economy prosperous. The rise of independence, intelligence, and creativity lead to the Renaissance, a time of great learning and art, thus making the Dark Ages an age of significant development.

The Roman Empire had control in Europe for hundreds of years, with little competition in the region. Its size, however, made it difficult for the empire to maintain laws across different locations. When the empire finally collapsed, local governments became dominant in Europe. Now, no single government had full power, so individual governments could create different laws based on the land and people which belonged to them. Document 6 states that this localism created chaos in the area since these governments were unable to stop the spreading violence. Yet, it does not explain how miniscule these conflicts became compared to the wars waged before. Because local governments were smaller, battles between different groups were as small.

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